Backpacking the Appalachian Trail

Over the years we had met Appalachian Trail hikers, read Bill Bryson’s “A Walk in the Woods” and thought about hiking this famous trail and so it was exciting to be here in Georgia hiking the approach trail to the start of the Appalachian Trail at Springer Mountain.

The rain had passed and the cold that had seeped into our bones over the last couple of days disappeared as we set off in sunshine and blue skies.  

Appalachian Trail fever....

It was an up and down trail and within a short distance we come across some hikers already having difficulty with the terrain and I hoped they would have the determination to keep on going.

Yep...more uphill

Further on we met some hard core enthusiasts from Florida and South Carolina who had been out on the trail for the last month enduring snow, sleet and very cold weather just to get away from it all.

The deciduous trees were still bare here, which was nice because it gave us a view through the branches to the mountain ranges in the distance. The ground was a carpet of fallen leaves and the trail was full of sparkling mica rocks and large chunks of marble. I thought how different it would be hiking in the summer under the canopy of leafy trees.

We secured a grassy spot to pitch our tent at Springer Mountain Shelter and not a moment too soon because it wasn’t long before the campground was bursting at its seams with through hikers. This wasn’t the place to be if you were after some peace and solitude….

Springer Mountain Shelter campsite

With a cool evening approaching and the horizon turning a vivid pink through the trees we made a fire and heated up our dinner but we struggled to eat it all.

Vivid sunset

During the night I got up and as I looked around I felt I was on an island surrounded by a sea of stars as the lights from surrounding towns twinkled through the trees in the valley below.

We woke early and after signing the official Appalachian Trail register we set off downhill entering a new world of Gaps, Notches and Balds.

The trail wound its way under vast arches of rhododendron bushes and at times was quite muddy underfoot.

Arch of Rhododendrons

Then continuing we entered a rainforest of tall trees, creeks and lovely waterfalls.

Beautiful waterfalls

The temperature increased as we climbed out of the protection of the tall trees so it was with relief when we traversed the top and began to descend on the shady side into Hawk Mountain Shelter for the night.

Where on the right trail...

Home for the night

We started the next day downhill and then climbed a few steep uphills before stopping for a break at the top of the ridge.

 The scenery changed around each bend

One of the many creeks

We descended for some time to a spot overlooking a creek and decided to have our lunch before making the uphill push to Gooch Shelter. Voices echoed loudly from the campground so we decided to walk on to Gooch Gap in hopes of a smaller crowd in camp. It turned out to be a good choice with less people and a lovely bridge to sit on while we filtered our water.

Preacher Rock Overlook

Morning came quickly and we set off for Woody Gap arriving in plenty of time to be picked up by a lovely lady who we really enjoyed talking to. We found out her husband shuttled Bill and Katz from Atlanta Airport in Bill Bryson’s book “A Walk in the Woods”. She gave us a tour of downtown Dahlonega before dropping us back at Dude.

With all our gear packed away we set off for North Carolina and the Great Smoky Mountains driving through some of the most beautiful scenery I have ever seen. My first thoughts were we’ll have to come back to see it in autumn....!!

We arrived at Oconaluftee Visitors Centre to find a landslide had closed Newfoundland Gap which meant we had to drive around the park. We camped a few nights at Smokemont and Catalooche before driving into Tennessee where we decided to do some loop hikes up to the Appalachian Trail.

Mountain Farm Museum in Oconaluftee

Grazing Elk  in Catalooche

Visiting Butterfly's in our campsite

It was exciting to be on the trail again and we set off between weather systems for a strenuous day hike up to the Appalachian Trail.

Trillium flowers carpeting the ground

This 13 mile (21 km) hike with 3,500 ft (1,067 m) of climbing and descending would give us a snapshot of what to expect if we decided to hike the whole trail.

Water cascading along the trail

Moss covered rocks

The trail traverses the ridge of the Great Smoky Mountains

A carpet of green emerges on the ground 

It turned out to be a big day and for now I was happy to continue being a section hiker.

The Dogwood trees were flowering and bright green leaves were beginning to emerge on the trees. It was wonderful to see spring taking a firmer hold.

Then the rain set in so we went for a drive to Pigeon Forge to discover we had arrived in the middle of the “Spring Grand Rod Run” and hundreds of classic car enthusiasts were cruising up and down the Scenic Parkway at 5 mph. 

A day later the weather cleared and with our permit in hand we set off on another 4 day backpack. It was very pretty with the leaves emerging on the trees and wildflowers covering the ground. In fact it was so lush that it reminded me of Olympic NP. 

We climbed high up to Miry Ridge Trail through dense rhododendron bushes and forded cascading creeks to reach our campground at Dripping Springs Mountain.

It was 35 F (2 C) when we woke and the sun gave little warmth as we hiked up to the Appalachian Trail. It was interesting to know as I hiked my left foot was in Tennessee and my right foot was in North Carolina...!! We chatted to lots of through hikers as we made our way to Double Spring Gap Shelter for the night.

Trout Lily

Frost and ice covered the ground as we set off for Clingman's Dome. It was a heart starter straight away as we hiked up through dense fir trees and fallen logs covered with green moss. Not much light filtered through making it very chilly. We stopped for a snack at Clingmans Dome taking in the panoramic view before descending a very rocky trail to the Mt Collins Shelter.

Clingman's Dome

This was the busiest Appalachian Shelter we had encountered with hikers stopping here to resupply in Gatlinburg the next day.  

It was a warmer night and very bright with the moon shining into the shelter. I climbed into my sleeping bag and drifted off to sleep.

Wildflower beauty 

The shelter was empty by the time we set off to walk 13 miles and descend 3,600 ft to Jakes Creek Trail Head. At first we had to scramble around lots of fallen trees.

Getting a real workout...

We climbed over lots of fallen trees

Then as we descended we were surrounded by wildflowers and the trail followed the river back to the trail head.

Trillium in bloom

The scenery and chatting to the through hikers had made this a memorable experience and we were looking forward to joining the trail again as we travel northwards..... 

Beautiful wilderness